Cheese Fondue Reviews

If you wanted to entertain in the '60s, a fondue pot was de rigueur, presenting a casual alternative to the formal dinners of earlier eras. Some of us still have the dregs of that original bottle of kirsch in the back of the liquor cabinet. This is fortunate because, with the current and unprecedented cheese renaissance in this country, it's time to unearth that old fondue pot and light up the Sterno.

Being Swiss, I have a few ideas for improvement:
1) I use a mixture of Gruyère and Vacherin Fribourgois - creamy yet sharp
2) I leave the cheese and wine about four hours at room temperature before I start
3) I chop at least four cloves of garlic and soak them with the cheese and wine in advance
4) A splash of lemon juice improves the flavor
5) I also put herbs such as chives and parsley in the fondue - looks really nice and tastes great too
6) I always offer a mixture of whole wheat bread and French bread

Made it the first time following the recipe and method/prep. Made it subsequently with a few alterations (improvements): adding several finely-chopped garlic cloves to the wine; dividing the cornstarch between the cheese and Kirsch; and adding a little freshly grated nutmeg. Very satisfying on a cold winter night.

Fantastically easy and tasty. We added some
Appenzeller cheese to this at the
recommendation of the folks at our local cheese
shop, and served with cubed crusty bread and
sliced apples that we picked earlier in the day.
Substituted brandy with a splash of maraschino
juice for the kirsch.
After we got to the 8 minute mark of simmering
the consistency was a little loose so we added
another handful of cheese... that did the trick.
Will definitely make again. Will find a way to use
more garlic next time, either by rubbing it on
the bread or throwing a few cloves in the pot
with the wine. Or both....

Ah. Sorry to all you folks who had trouble with this one, but it is absolutely authentic in every detail (even down to the garlic rub and Fendant). I've had hundreds of these from my Swiss relatives and this it the Real McCoy! Make sure the wine it very hot before you add the cheese, and allow all the cheese to melt (it will get stringy at first) before adding the cornstarch mixture. Substitute emmenthaler cheese with raclette cheese for a real treat!

Eh, dissapointed. The cheese came out stringy and never fully dissolved in the wine mixture - like glue. Not that much fun. The taste could have also been MUCH richer for me, maybe we would like the garlic clove simmer method suggested by another reviewer. I made it exactly as written, to a tee, and was just a little dissapointed. For all that fat and calories, it better be darn near orgasmic for pete's sake!